A study by Ohio State University revealed that being in a troubled marriage is bad for your health.
Although other studies have reported marital stress being bad for your health, this study focuses on the production of proinflammatory cytokines and the negative long-term consequences of bickering on your health.
The Cytokine Connection
Stress can apparently slow the production of proinflammatory cytokines. These protein molecules are produced by white blood cells and are key to the healing process in your body.After a quarrel, when a couple is obviously stressed, the cytokines are produced more slowly. The morning after an argument cytokines may elevate more than is healthy.
"Elevated levels of proinflammatory cytokines have been linked to a variety of age-related disease.""Couples who demonstrated consistently higher levels of hostile behaviors across both their interactions healed at 60% of the rate of low-hostile couples."
Source: Archives of General Psychiatry
Negative Consequences of Constant Bickering
So, if you and your spouse bicker a lot, you could be slowing the initial production of a blood protein that you need to help heal your wounds and possibly set yourself up for more serious illnesses such as "depression, as well as heart disease, osteoporosis, arthritis, type 2 diabetes, cancer, and general physical decline."Source: Forbes
The Ohio State University study was reported in the December 2005 edition of Archives of General Psychiatry. Although the study involved only 42 married couples, the gist of the report is that a troubled marriage is bad for your health.
So, don't bicker!
